Second ‘Hometown Heroes’ volume released

Growing up in foster homes, Susan Knickerbocker searched for role models and found them in the books she read.

Later in life, this idea of people behaving in an exemplary manner became the impetus for Hometown Heroes, a community-wide effort to celebrate the good-hearted, everyday folks of South Whidbey.

From 1995 to 2020, Knickerbocker, a Freeland resident, extensively interviewed hundreds of people. She gathered quotes from friends and family members and compiled a story capturing the essence of the nominated person. The late Jim Freeman coined the term “Hometown Heroes” for the profiles, which ran in the South Whidbey Record for a period of nearly 25 years. In 2008, a book containing 51 stories was released.

This month marks the release of the second volume of Hometown Heroes, which contains the stories of 51 more people, randomly drawn out of a hat.

For Knickerbocker, it’s always been important to her that the community takes ownership of the stories.

“I don’t think of myself as an author or a writer at all. I’m not,” she said. “I don’t even like writing, really. I like interviewing.”

In 1995, Knickerbocker woke up with the idea for Hometown Heroes in the middle of the night, perhaps influenced by the biographies of famous people that she read to her children. That morning, she approached Jim Larsen, who was then editor for the South Whidbey Record, about the concept.

“I thought it’d be inspiring to have local people that people could know,” she said.

She decided to give writing the profiles a go when no one else stepped forward.

Community members would nominate someone they knew to be a Hometown Hero. To this day, Knickerbocker has collected probably 450 nominations that she has yet to write about.

Many Hometown Heroes were shy about accepting the honor and required some persuading.

“I’d usually find somebody that they knew to convince them,” Knickerbocker said. “I’d come around the back door. I’d rarely directly ask anybody themselves.”

Cynthia Jaffe, a midwife at the Greenbank Birth Center, was one who acquiesced.

“While it was my calling and my passion, it was also my job,” the Hometown Hero said. “She (Knickerbocker) assured me that I did qualify, so I reluctantly agreed to go forward with it.”

Working from a set of about 50 questions, Knickerbocker usually spent multiple hours at a time with the Hometown Hero in their own environment, whether that be their workplace, home or somewhere else. One interview that began in a church restroom ended up being completed there, after five or six hours of talking.

The questions vary, from the light-hearted (“What would you be if you could be any inanimate object?”) to the more serious (“Who would you apologize to?”). Knickerbocker has a natural talent for getting some Hometown Heroes to open up about their troubled pasts, simply by asking about something they have had to overcome in life. She hopes the end result of her profile is someone who is well-rounded that people can relate to.

“I try to make them not sound perfect, because no one is,” she said. “It’s not a puff piece. I also ask them about their worst defects, their worst habits.”

Over the years strangers from different states have contacted her for help in starting something similar to Hometown Heroes in their area. She gladly sends them her list of questions.

“Susan Knickerbocker is someone who spreads kindness like confetti,” said Gail LaVassar, who is one of the Hometown Heroes featured in the new book.

LaVassar admires the profiles for shedding light on things that neighbors are doing which have a positive impact on the community.

“She really seems to try to understand people in a meaningful way,” LaVassar said. “To me it feels like what she’s doing is introducing members of our community to others.”

Erik Jokinen, another person featured in the new volume, said Knickerbocker has the ability to talk to anybody.

“If the world had more Susan Knickerbockers, we wouldn’t have any of the troubles we have today,” he said. “She’s a good listener, she’s a pleasant person, she always sees the best in everyone.”

Jokinen said that he is just as surprised now to receive the honor of being a Hometown Hero as he was eight years ago, when his profile ran in the South Whidbey Record. He loves that the series is about recognizing people for the good they do in the community.

“It’s really unique,” he said. “It’s what makes South Whidbey, South Whidbey, and so much different from other places.”

All proceeds from Hometown Heroes Volume 2 support South Whidbey Schools Foundation, Island Senior Resources and Whidbey Animals’ Improvement Foundation. The book costs $30 and is available at the WAIF thrift store and Senior Thrift in Freeland, the Island Senior Resources office in Bayview, the South Whidbey Community Center and Moonraker Books in Langley and online at hometownheroes2.org.

The book is chock-full of profiles, photos, quotes about the Hometown Heroes and illustrations by South Whidbey kids.

A celebration of the book’s release is planned for 3-5 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 23 in the front room of the Bayview Cash Store. Hometown Heroes will be on hand to give autographs. Goosefoot will provide light refreshments, and Hometown Hero Dana Moffat and the ensemble, Sarungano, will provide Zimbabwean vocals. Kevin Lungren, whose daughters appear in the new book, will emcee the event.